Ensoniq5, that last image reminds me of an old Bruce Dern flick, Silent Running.

The domed 'gardens' were added as an entirely intentional homage to Silent Running which is one of those films watched in my childhood that helped form my continuing love affair with science fiction and, well, spaceships and stuff. They were added as an afterthought, the original ship design was constructed by a member of the team who unfortunately left without supplying the model, so I had to recreate it in Anim8or from the few renders available. I loved the design so left it pretty much unchanged, except for the gardens. I'm very happy you made the connection with Silent Running!

There's actually a number of small nods to other shows and contemporary science hidden (some more secretly than others) in the MBE plates. The blue 'carpet' texture in the interior shot attached was derived from a recent quantum-microscope image of the atomic structure of ... I forget ... a metal of some sort! Anyway, I liked the pattern and thought it might be kinda cool to incorporate it somewhere!

Hey all. It's been a while since I've posted in this thread, but just wanted to provide an update. The Mission Backup Earth project is still going strong with many episodes online and several awards in the bag from around the world . Working with David Prowse (Darth Vader) was a real highlight, credit to Alex (writer, director, producer) for making that bit of magic happen! We're always spruiking for new talent, specifically animators and renderers as this is always a bit of a bottleneck, so PM me if you'd like to get involved.

Below are some stills from recent episodes, most of which were constructed in Anim8or. Some models were contributed by team members from around the world using a range of modeling systems and all were rendered in Carrara.

Edit: After several unsuccessful attempts to link to the Mission Backup Earth YouTube channel I have given up! No doubt I am doing something wrong, if you want to check out recent episodes just search for "Mission Backup Earth" in YouTube.

Edit: After several unsuccessful attempts to link to the Mission Backup Earth YouTube channel I have given up! No doubt I am doing something wrong, if you want to check out recent episodes just search for "Mission Backup Earth" in YouTube.

Those unfamiliar... Mission Backup Earth would NOT be here, frankly, if not for Anim8or. A core of Anim8or designers were integral to the initial concept development for this project, and if not for that core, the 3DCG team that Mission Backup Earth is highly dependent upon would likely have never taken off. Even to this date, Tony (Ensoniq5) is the powerhouse of the 3DCG team, I believe still doing much if his basic model-building using Anim8or, prior to porting it to other production software for the higher-end works.

I think this is significant because MBE is an internationally viewed, well-received and highly recognized webseries within its circle of peers.

Actors and stage folk behind, I believe Tony is right near to the Mission Backup Earth creator Alexander Pfander himself in importance to this ongoing webseries project.

Thanks Kevin for the link, much appreciated, and thanks Arik for your support! All my modeling is done in Anim8or, I'm yet to find a better modeler to be honest. Its tools are simple but utterly free of malarky, and the ability to wrangle multiple objects within a single project is absolutely crucial to creating really complex models without going insane. For example, the hotel ('Hotel2.jpg') is a single huge model built entirely in Anim8or. I can't overstate the importance of being able to build elements in an uncluttered 'workbench' object before cutting/pasting into an 'assembly' object for eventual export to Carrara for rendering (and adding plant objects). This simple ability is conspicuously absent in many other modelers, forcing the artist to construct and assemble meshes in a single, increasingly complex workspace.

The only reasons I render with Carrara rather than Anim8or relate to speed and material complexity. Anim8or's ART renderer makes really beautiful images but isn't fast enough for our production requirements. I also prefer Carrara's very powerful material editor whose channel-mixing functions are capable of almost infinite complexity and control in surface texture definition.

Of the five attached stills:

EngineRoom4: Modeled by team member Daniel Maland, I'm not sure what modeling software was used. I added the graphics to the display consoles, lighted and rendered.HershelCorridor: Modeled in Anim8or with the door/frame element supplied by Daniel. Rendered using mirror elements to extend the length of the corridor.KofiAnanBridgeTest1: Modeled in Anim8or with some elements supplied by Daniel.Hotel2: Modeled entirely in Anim8or with plant elements added using Carrara's plant generator.SlaveQuarters3: Primary model/set provided by Daniel, foreground container elements modeled in Anim8or.